The Sylvan Avenue Mural

Part of the retaining wall beneath the Belmont Hotel at Sylvan and Commerce has a mural painted by local artists.

The current mural was designed and painted by Dallas muralist Carlos Donjuan and his associates, Sour Grapes and took less than 24 hours to complete.

Harwood 609 Jazz Club

The Harwood 609 Jazz Club, has no jazz, and is not a club, but is just a bar in the bottom of a parking garage.

It's no wonder it's closed.

Storms Rolling In

Watching the storms roll in from the West towards the W Hotel and Victory Plaza.

House of Blues

The back of the House of Blues, and Dick's Last Resort, located on the North side Woodall Rogers from the West End, and just South of the Victory Plaza area.

The Big Red Sculpture

Ave, by Mark di Suvero, at the Sothern entrance to the DMA.

Dallas Skyline - Victory Park Area View

The view of downtown Dallas from the Victory Park Area.

Shot from about midway between the Perot Museum of Nature and Science and the House of Blues.

The John Fitzgerald Kennedy Memorial

Dallas certainly got a bad rap back in November 22, 1963. So, in order to help boost the city's image and show the world that Dallas really does like Democrats (sorry, had to get a little political humor in here), the JFK Memorial was erected in 1970.

The memorial was designed by architect Philip Johnson to be a cenotaph, or open tomb, intended to symbolize Kenndy's spirit. Its precast concrete walls stand 30 feet high and encase a 50 foot by 50 foot area. In the center is a marble slab carved with "John Fitzgerald Kennedy" and embossed in gold.

Outside, on the North side of the plaza, is a square, granite memorial marker engraved with:

The joy and excitement of John Fitzgerald Kennedy’s life belonged to all men. So did the pain and sorrow of his death. When he died on November 22, 1963, shock and agony touched human conscience throughout the world. In Dallas, Texas, there was a special sorrow. The young President died in Dallas. The death bullets were fired 200 yards west of this site. This memorial, designed by Philip Johnson, was erected by the people of Dallas. Thousands of citizens contributed support, money and effort. It is not a memorial to the pain and sorrow of death, but stands as a permanent tribute to the joy and excitement of one man’s life. John Fitzgerald Kennedy’s life.

A view of the memorial and "Old Red", the Dallas County Courthouse.

A view of the inside of the cenotaph.

The "memorial stone"

Another view of the inside, showing just how much of the skyline is hidden.

Close up of one of the round "Lego" decorations.

Of course, as with any architecture in Dallas, there is always bound to be some criticism. The architectural critic, Witold Rybczynski, felt that the design did not do justice to the memory of JFK, and likened the precast concrete walls to "mammoth Lego blocks."

Visit it and decide for yourself if it is a fitting tribute, or just some giant Lego blocks slapped together. No matter what, it's sure to elicit some sort of an emotion from you.

Elvis Statue

Down in Dallas' West End there is proof that Elvis has left the building. After all, he's standing right outside of it.

The West End

Come for the History, Stay for the Fun!
Or at least, that's what the official saying is for the Dallas West End. While it's a popular place in the evenings for dinner and drinks, it was all but dead over lunchtime when I was there. Of course, it doesn't help that the area really is all but dead compared to the quirky shopping and entertainment area I remember back when I first moved to the region.

Don't get me wrong, it's not a complaint. The historical buildings are all still standing and either in use or in renovation for future use. It's certainly worth walking around and seeing some of what Dallas once looked like.

At the corner of Lamar and McKinney.

There was once a quirky shopping mall and miniature golf course in the
building on the left. Then there was Planet Hollywood.
Then there was little to nothing left.

There was once movies and an unusual antique store in here.

Dallas Alley. It's pretty at night when the neon is on.

There's plenty of information about the history of the West End, as well as a current list of restaurants and shops, at the official Dallas West End site.

Angular

Angles in architecture always tickle my fancy. Add in some reflections, and maybe a little chrome, and I'll be extra tickled.

There will be more pictures like this. It's just who I am and what I like.

Shady Lane

Lincoln Plaza has some very nice tree lined walkways. A perfect strip to walk through on a hot summer day.

The Gift of Life (or Art)

Situated at the main entrance to the Dallas Museum of Art (and its underground parking garage) is a large glass mosaic. The mosaic is 12 feet high and spans an impressive 60 feet in width.

The mosaic, entitled Genesis, the Gift of Life, was created by Miguel Covarrubias as a commission by Peter and Waldo Stewart for the Stewart Building in 1954.  It was moved to the DMA and restored in the early 1990s.

More information on the piece and the artist is available from the DMA Connect website.

Back to the Surface

Like any good city, Dallas does have tunnels between some of its buildings (more on that later). Here's heading up the escalator to the surface on the North side of the underground at Thanksgiving Square. You pop up between the Mosaic apartments and TXU Energy building (also known as Energy Plaza).

In the courtyard space is a modern sculpture of red, blue, and yellow square arches.

Premium Parking

I'm an architecture geek at heart. Especially when it comes to buildings and structures that normally don't get considered as something that needs any design beyond the standard utilitarian look.

This particular parking garage has caught my eye every time I've driven by, but I've only ever seen it from the intersection in a car, a few buildings down. It's located right across from Thanksgiving Square, so a lot easier to see on foot.

For a parking garage, it's actually rather impressive with its multiple levels of mid-century designed formed concrete.

Thanksgiving Square

Thanksgiving Square is officially located at 1627 Pacific Avenue, but to put it into better perspecitve, it is bounded by Pacific Avenue to the South and Bryan Street and North Ervay Street to the North, making it a triangular oasis in the center of downtown Dallas. Built in 1976, it was originally planned as a "traffic relieving complex" for the city, and while the Bullington Truck terminal and pedestrian network is underneath it, the main thing to see if the park and its non-denominational chapel.

One of the plaques found throughout Thanksgiving Square.

 The Chapel of Thanksgiving was architected by Philip Johnson as a small, spiral tower for the urban pilgrim to find a peaceful enclave for prayerful thanks. It is accessible from either a spiral ramp originating at the Northern tip of the square, or from a 125 foot bridge spanning one of the square's waterfalls accessible from the middle of the square.

Thanksgiving Chapel and the waterfall.

Thanksgiving Chapel in front of Republic Center

A view up the bridge leading to the chapel.

The stained glass inside is truly a sight to see. Designed by Gabriel Loire of Chartres, France, it spirals from outside in, from dark to light, and is one of the largest horizontally mounted stained glass installations in the world.

Gabriel Loire's "Glory Window"

Pictures do not do the stained glass justice.

Further information can be found from the Thanks-Giving Square Foundation

Why this blog exists

I've been living in the Dallas area for over 15 years now, and while I've certainly been all around town and sampled much of what Dallas has to offer, I've stumbled across a new part of Dallas I didn't know much about. You see, I've taken a job downtown.

Sure, I've been downtown plenty of times, but I've almost always been driving, and it's hard to really see and appreciate parts of Dallas from inside a car. But leaving the office at lunch time and picking a direction to walk until you come across something good to eat (or even just eat if you pick the wrong direction) I've really been able to start to appreciate some of the little details this city has to offer. 

I'm a New Yorker by birth, and to bastardize an old joke, my parents got me here as fast as they could. However, I've always retained a fondness for New York City and all the visual treats that all the Burroughs have to offer. The architecture is just stunning. When I first moved to Dallas the architecture was just blah to me. The buildings all seemed to mimic designs from about 20 years before they were built, as if Dallas just didn't want to try something new and waited for the rest of the world to build something first. Even the modern I.M. Pei designs seemed outdated, but I digress... Now I'm seeing architecture and the city in general in a different light, especially since I'm seeing the city on foot now as opposed as from behind the wheel.

I plan on using this space to share some of my findings. Hopefully it will be more than just a repository for some of my pictures and rambling thoughts on them and others will get some use and insight from it as well.